BurmaNet News, June 1, 2006

[Editor]

June 1, 2006 Issue # 2974

INSIDE BURMA
AFP: Myanmar democracy party hails push for UN resolution
Irrawaddy: Supreme court rejects Shan leaders’ appeal
Irrawaddy: Opposition groups urge UNSC intervention
Mizzima: Kachin used for forced labour on eve of ILO conference
DVB: Three people killed in lower Burma in horrific accident
DVB: NLD youths remember a selfless colleague Hla Khin
IMNA: Military continues its policy of forced labour indirectly

ON THE BORDER
Deutsche: Japan gives 59,270 dollars for birth control among Karen refugees
Narinjara: Quake jolts Bangladesh-Burma border areas

INTERNATIONAL
AP: U.S. plans to pursue U.N. resolution on Myanmar but Russia, China and
Japan object, U.N. diplomats say
VOA: Britain 'appalled' by Burma's detention policies

OPINION / OTHER
Irrawaddy: How much more does it take?
Irrawaddy: Maung Aye confounds those who wrote him off

____________________________________
INSIDE BURMA

June 1, Agence France Presse
Myanmar democracy party hails push for UN resolution

Myanmar's pro-democracy party, led by detained Nobel laureate Aung San Suu
Kyi, praised the US call for a United Nations resolution against the
military regime and said it was a boost for the nation's people.

The United States said Wednesday it would pursue an unprecedented UN
Security Council resolution calling on Myanmar's military rulers to change
their repressive policies.

"As far as we know from the media, there could be a UN resolution on
Myanmar. It would be a very rare success," Lwin, spokesman for the
National League for Democracy, told AFP.

"We have to hope that it would bring benefits for the people," he said.

But he also said it was impossible to know how the nation's military
rulers would react to a Security Council resolution.

"We cannot say whether they would obey the resolution or not," he said.

No one has pushed for a resolution on Myanmar at the council so far
despite continual international condemnation for nearly two decades over
alleged human rights abuses by the junta in the Southeast Asian state.

The US State Department said after a rare Security Council briefing on
Myanmar Wednesday that Washington "intends to pursue" such a resolution
that would "underscore the international community's concerns about the
situation" there.

The announcement came just days after the regime extended Aung San Suu
Kyi's house arrest by another year, in defiance of a direct appeal by UN
Secretary General Kofi Annan to the junta leader Senior General Than Shwe.

The military regime usually ignores international pressure, and has
insisted that Aung San Suu Kyi's detention is a "domestic issue". The
60-year-old democracy leader has spent a decade in detention over the past
17 years.

Independent politician Win Naing said the military government may have
underestimated the international reaction to the latest extension.

"The SPDC (the State Peace and Development Council) government should
relax the overly done restriction," he said, referring to the junta by its
official name.

The National League for Democracy won a landslide victory in 1990
elections, but they were never allowed to take office.

____________________________________

June 1, Irrawaddy
Supreme court rejects Shan leaders’ appeal - Khun Sam

The Supreme Court in Rangoon on Thursday summarily rejected appeals by
seven Shan leaders against their conviction and lengthy prison sentences
on charges of treason and defaming the state.

An eighth member of the group of defendants died in prison, reportedly of
epilepsy, before his appeal could be heard.

The eight were convicted by a Rangoon court last November and given
sentences of up to 106 years imprisonment. That heavy sentence was imposed
on Maj-Gen Sao Hso Ten, president of the Shan State Peace Council. Hkun
Htun Oo, chairman of the Shan National League for Democracy, was sentenced
to 92 years, and Sai Nyut Lwin, SNLD general secretary, to 75 years.

Aung Thein, a member of a defense team provided by Burma’s opposition
National League for Democracy, told The Irrawaddy the appeals had been
summarily dismissed with no explanation. A notice from the judge, Tin Aye,
reading simply “All applications rejected,” had been tacked to a notice
board outside the Supreme Court.

Aung Thein said the “inappropriate” verdict could endanger any process of
national reconciliation. The defendants had exercised honest and lawful
criticism of the government and had not been guilty of defamation. A final
appeal would be lodged, he said.

Following last November’s conviction and sentencing of the eight Shan
leaders the US State Department called for their immediate release. The
jailing of the group demonstrated “that the junta’s so-called ‘Roadmap to
Disciplined Democracy’ is neither credible nor inclusive,” spokesman Adam
Ereli said.

____________________________________

June 1, Irrawaddy
Opposition groups urge UNSC intervention - Aung Lwin Oo

Burmese opposition groups at home and abroad have called for the UN
Security Council to help resolve ongoing political crises in the country,
despite objections to council intervention from some member countries.

Following a second Burma briefing on Wednesday, three member
countries—China, Russia and Japan—rejected including Burma on the
council’s formal agenda, drawing renewed calls from Burma’s main
opposition group for council action.

“We want the UN Security Council to discuss [Burma] on the formal agenda
and adopt a binding resolution,” NLD Spokesperson Nyan Win told The
Irrawaddy today.

The military government has failed to commit the yearly resolutions
adopted by the UN General Assembly, he added.

China, Russia and Japan insisted that Burma does not pose “a threat to
international peace and security,” and therefore merits discussion at only
an informal level.

“The Security Council is a body that is primarily responsible for threats
to international peace and security,” an Associated Press report cited
Japanese Ambassador to the UN Kenzo Oshima as saying.

“We particularly regret to learn that Japan is among other countries
opposing the proposal [to put Burma on the UNSC agenda],” said the NLD
spokesperson.

 “I think the conclusion that Burma is not a threat to peace and security
is wrong,” said Mahn Sha, general secretary of the ethnic opposition
group Karen National Union. He argued that the waves of refugees fleeing
towards the Thai border and the spread of HIV/AIDS constitute threats to
international security. “We have a Burmese saying: Do use a needle in
time, or you might need an axe later,” he said.

A Burmese community relief group, the Karen Women’s Organization, on
Wednesday submitted a letter to UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan calling
for Security Council action on behalf of more than 15,000 Karen villagers
who have been displaced by recent Burmese military attacks.

London-based Burma Campaign UK in a press statement issued on Thursday
welcomed the latest briefing on Burma, but urged more substantial action.
“It is a huge step forward that the Security Council is now the place
where Burma is discussed, but we need action, not just more discussions,”
said Yvette Mahon, director of Burma Campaign UK, in the statement.

During a closed-door meeting at UN headquarters in New York on Wednesday,
UN Under Secretary-General for Political Affairs Ibrahim Gambari briefed
Security Council members on his recent three-day visit to Burma, during
which he met junta chief Snr-Gen Than Shwe and detained opposition leader
Aung San Suu Kyi.

Gambari stated in a press conference following his May visit to Burma that
the country’s military regime appeared to be “turning a new chapter.”

However, the junta defied the expectations of many by refusing to release
Suu Kyi and extending her term of detention for another year.

____________________________________

May 31, Mizzima News
Kachin used for forced labour on eve of ILO conference - Min Thu

Burmese authorities in Kachin State are using forced labour to build an
80-mile-long road from Putao to Swanprabom, sources in Putao told Mizzima.

News of the use of forced labour on the project comes as delegates at the
International Labour Conference in Geneva prepare to consider referring
the Burmese military to the International Court of Justice over their use
of forced labour and prosecution of people they claim to have made false
claims to the International Labour Organization.

Local officials reportedly ordered each household from Putao and
Swanprabom to send one person to work on the road. Residents were forced
to pay their own transportation and food costs while working on the site,
according to a source in the town.

Families of government employees were reportedly spared while others were
forced to walk for a day to reach the construction site.

“The project has been going for three months, building stone-filled road.
The villages send the forced labour in turn, carrying stone and filling on
the road to make the road usable by cars. And also they have to build
bridges on the road too,” a Putao resident said.

“The village heads told us that if we cannot work, we had to go to army
units and deal with them ourselves. To avoid unnecessary problems with
them we have no choice but have to go there.”

When completed the road will make up part of a route from Myitkyina to
Putao designed to allow tourists to move through the area all year round.
The current route is almost unusable in the rainy season and is re-paved
every dry season.

Officials from the military’s Public Works Department have inspected the
construction of the road, which is reportedly kept under surveillance by
local police forces. Residents said military personnel also visited the
site.

The state-run New Light of Myanmar reported on April 7 that lieutenant
general Ye Myint inspected the new road and met with residents at the
start of last month. The Jade land Company, which is owned by jade minors
from Phakant, has been contracted to upgrade the road.

Htin Kyaw from the Federation of Trade Unions of Burma said, “[Forced
labour] is still happening even in Rangoon and in the Naga area of Sagaing
division”.

____________________________________

May 31, Democratic Voice of Burma
Three people killed in lower Burma in horrific accident

The plough of a bulldozer placed on a vehicle driven by a Burmese army
officer hit a civilian car and killed three people including one local
authority member at Daik-U Township in lower on 30 May.

According to a local resident, the victims, Daik-U No.1, Ward authority
member San Myint Lwin, construction worker Tin Maung Tun and fire brigade
member Myint Thein Win, were on their way to build a pandal stage at a
government-controlled physic nut plantation when the plough of a bulldozer
placed on a 21 wheel trailer driven by an army lieutenant accidentally
chopped their heads off. Another person survived the accident with slight
injuries.

The name of the army officer is still not known but he was reportedly to
have said that he has no time for the civilians and drove off without
apologising.

“When the situation was like that the driver of the 21 wheel vehicle said
that he is a lieutenant of the army,” said a local resident. “He said he
can’t explain whether he is in the right or wrong or not as he has to
deliver the vehicle to Naypyidaw (the name of the new Burmese
administrative capital near Pyinmana in central Burma) by 7am and can’t
waste his time, and drove away.”

Funerals for their victims were held on 26 May and the local township
authorities gave 100,000 Kyat (less than US$100) each to their families
for the funerals. The grieving family members and relatives were also told
by the authorities to say that their loved ones died in a normal accident
on the pain of action being taken against them.

____________________________________

May 31, Democratic Voice of Burma
NLD youths remember a selfless colleague Hla Khin

The National League for Democracy (NLD) youth members and political
activists held a memorial service on the 7th anniversary of the death of
Rangoon Shwepyitha Township NLD youth leader Hla Khin who died in the
notorious Insein Jail.

The ceremony was held at Chaukhtatgyi Sasana Gonyi Buddhist Monastery and
it was attended by NLD members, former political prisoners and student
leaders including Min Ko Naing and pro-democracy activists.

Hla Khin was arrested and detained without any charges in 1998 during an
upcountry tour of Aung San Suu Kyi, and he suffered severe depression
after he endured inhumane tortures in the hand of the ousted Military
Intelligence Service (MIS) agents and prison authorities.

“As he was unable to bear the pains of being detained without committing
any crime, before he died at around 5pm, 30 May 1999, outside the iron
bars (of the prison cell), he told us he was going to do something,” a
fellow prisoner told DVB. “I will do something for you all. They might
release you after I do something, but he didn’t say clearly what he was
going to do. He only said he would something for the good of his
comrades.”

Hla Khin committed suicide.

“It should have never happened in the first place,” an NLD member said.
“We lost our rights as a prisoner (prisoners). We had no rights to demand.
Medical treatment rights were none. He died unnecessarily. “

“After his death we received the rights to walk before showers,” said
another NLD. “They (prison authorities) came to ask if our curry was
good/delicious, if there was any oil in it, if it was good to eat. They
themselves cooked ngapi (fish paste), fried chinpaung (rosella) leaves for
us. They came to ask if we had enough medicines and all that. They
released us after sending us to the police controlled labour camps for a
month. He sacrificed his life for all and fought for our rights and our
freedom.”

____________________________________

June 1, Independent Mon News for Agency
Military continues its policy of forced labour indirectly - Mi Kyae Goe

Residents of 12 villages are being forced to build a road by the infantry
battalions based in Kaw-zar Sub Township under the Southeast Command since
May 5.

The road being constructed is to stretch from Kaloh village to
Dhani-Thakyar village on the edge of the sub Kalein-aung Township in
Tenasserim Division and will be about 20 miles long.

The twelve villages roped in to build the road include Kaloh village,
Hanggan village, Kaw-zar village, Yin-ye village, Yin-dein village, Mi
Htaw-Hlar Lay village, Mi Htaw-Hlar Kyi village, Kyone-Ka-Nyar village,
Kabya village, Kabya-Wa village, and Dhani-Thakyar village.

“A member from every household in Kaloh village is being forced to build
the road with rocks. We are building where the battalion has made the
demarcation. The road is yet to be completed,” said Ma Aye Shein from
Kaloh village.

Infantry battalions from No-61 and No- 32 based in Ye Township and sub
Kaw-zar Township under the Southeast Command has taken the responsibility
of development programmes in these areas.

Each village is responsible for about 5,000 feet to 8,000 feet of road
construction.

“The villagers also paid two rock holes (measurement for a hundred cubic
foot) to build the road. The cost of one hole is Kyat 5,000. Some have
hired substitutes instead of working themselves. But we can’t pay that
kind of money. In fact we took loans to pay for the rock,” said Nai Poe
Tin and Nai HLu Maing from Win Thamoet village.

The Village Peace and Development Council (VPDC) also ordered villagers to
pay two rock holes on May 11.

“We had to stop our own work because we were forced to work on the road
for about three days a week. We not only can’t hire substitutes but also
can’t send our sons and daughters,” said Nai Tin Aye.

The VPDC has punished people who could not work on the road project. They
fined Mi Tin Htay (52) a widow about Kyat 5,000. If she cannot pay, she
can be arrested.

According to the SPDC’s forced labour policy, the authorities do not order
for forced labour directly. They order the VPDC and the head of the
village authority arranges for forced labour.

According to a VPDC member who did not want to be named, “the battalions
and TPDC used to give orders directly earlier. Now the battalions order
for forced labour indirectly through the VPDC.

“The military has planned development projects to extend its power base as
of last year. The Kaloh-Dhani Thakyar road is one such development
project,” said one Township committee member from New Mon State Party.

____________________________________
ON THE BORDER

June 1, Deutsche Presse-Agentur
Japan gives 59,270 dollars for birth control among Karen refugees

The Japanese government will provide 59,270
dollars in assistance for family planning for more than 100,000 Karen
refugees who have fled to the Thai-Myamar border, the Japanese
embassy to Bangkok announced on Thursday.

The aid will be handed over to the Planned Parenthood Association
of Thailand (PPAT), a non-govermental organization, on Monday.
An estimated 140,000 refugees from the ethnic Karen minority are
living in temporary camps along the Thai border where they have
sought safety from the Myanmar military who have been waging a
campaign against both their guerilla forces and the civilian
population to end the Karens' five-decade-old struggle for the
autonomy of the Karen State.

The latest offensive has reportedly razed more than 2,000 Karen
villages, sending 15,000 new "displaced persons" to the border over
the past three months.

The growing border population faces numerous health and social
challenges, not the least of which is a rising population.

"While new refugees are still coming in, the increasing population
in refugee camps on account of the high birth rate has become an
issue," said a Japan Embassy statement, explaining the need for its
aid initiative.

____________________________________

June 1, Narinjara News
Quake jolts Bangladesh-Burma border areas

An earthquake jolted the bordering areas of Burma and Bangladesh yesterday
night.

The intensity of the quake, measuring 5.1 on the Richter scale, was 203 km
away from Bangladesh seaport city of Chittagong.

The tremor jolted Chittagong and three hill districts- Bandarban, and
Khagrachari and Rangamati-, are situated in the south eastern corner of
Bangladesh bordering with Burma.

However, there was no report of casualty and damages.

This was the six earthquakes in Chittagong in this year. It may be
mentioned that greater Chittagong is in high quake zone.

A total of 42 quakes jolted Chittagong in 2004 and 20 times in 2005.

____________________________________
INTERNATIONAL

June 1, Associated Press
U.S. plans to pursue U.N. resolution on Myanmar but Russia, China and
Japan object, U.N. diplomats say - Edith M. Lederer

The United States said it plans to pursue a U.N. resolution underscoring
international concern about Myanmar but Russia, China and Japan
immediately objected to putting the repressive military-run country on the
Security Council agenda.

The strong opposition from Moscow and Beijing who have veto power in the
council makes it highly unlikely that any resolution on Myanmar will be
adopted.

The U.S. announced its plan during a discussion Wednesday after a
closed-door briefing to the council by Undersecretary-General Ibrahim
Gambari on his recent visit to Myanmar, where he was allowed to visit
detained pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi, the first senior U.N.
official to do so in two years.

"We intend to offer a resolution," U.S. spokesman Richard Grenell said,
refusing to provide details ahead of an announcement from Washington.

Later, U.S. State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said the military
junta's decision to extend Suu Kyi's detention on May 27 demonstrated "its
continued unwillingness to engage in a credible and inclusive political
process."

"The economic, political and public health situation in Burma has
deteriorated to the point where the regime's activities and repression of
political rights now poses a threat to the stability, peace and security
of the region," he said, using the country's former name.

To keep up pressure on the regime, McCormack said, "the United States
intends to pursue a U.N. Security Council resolution that will underscore
the international community's concerns about the situation in Burma,
including the unjustifiable detention of a great champion of democracy,
Aung San Suu Kyi, and our common position that the regime must ensure an
inclusive and democratic political process."

France, Britain, Slovakia and other council members backed the U.S. view
and said the Myanmar government should not think it had done enough just
by welcoming Gambari, the diplomats said.

But Japan insisted that Myanmar does not pose a threat to international
peace and security and should not be on the council agenda.

"The Security Council is a body that is primarily responsible for threats
to international peace and security," Japan's U.N. Ambassador Kenzo Oshima
said, and Myanmar's neighbors as well as other countries "I don't think
consider the situation in Myanmar as a situation that poses a threat to
international peace and security."

Oshima said Japan's position was supported by China, Russia and others.

Japan is in favor of hearing reports from U.N. Secretary-General Kofi
Annan and the Secretariat "on the general situation in Myanmar, political,
progress in democratization, human rights and humanitarian" issues, he
said.

But Oshima said this should be done under "other matters" discussed by the
council "so it's not part of the formal agenda."

Russia said it would be completely inappropriate to put Myanmar on the
agenda because it is not a threat to international peace and security, and
China said Myanmar can solve its own problem and the U.N. should stay out
because the country doesn't pose a threat and the situation will get worse
if the U.N. gets involved, the diplomats said, speaking on condition of
anonymity because the meeting was closed.

The military junta took power in 1988 after crushing a pro-democracy
movement. In 1990, it refused to hand over power when Suu Kyi's National
League for Democracy won a landslide victory in general elections. Since
then, Suu Kyi has been in and out of detention.

At Gambari's press conference last week, before the military junta
extended Suu Kyi's detention, the U.N. political chief said the government
appeared ready to "turn a new page" and engage the international community
after years of hostility.

The next step, he said, would be to get the U.N. team that's now in place
in Myanmar to start talks with the junta about improved humanitarian
access to tens of thousands of displaced people in the country's east, the
fight against HIV/AIDS, reconciliation with Suu Kyi's political party,
which has been shut down, and other issues.

Annan expressed disappointment Tuesday that Myanmar's military rulers had
refused to release Suu Kyi and said the U.N. would continue to work with
the government and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations for her
release. He urged other countries with influence to "bring pressure to
bear."

____________________________________

June 1, VOA News
Britain 'appalled' by Burma's detention policies

Britain's top diplomat has condemned Burma's decision to extend Aung San
Suu Kyi's detention for another year.

British Foreign Secretary Margaret Beckett says she was "appalled" by the
military government's announcement last week extending the detention order
against the Burmese Nobel Peace Prize winner for another year.

Aung San Suu Kyi has been held under house arrest for the past three years
-- part of more than 10 years of detention and imprisonment she has
endured since her pro-democracy movement challenged the Burmese junta.

Beckett said in a statement in London Wednesday that Burma's failure to
respond to repeated human-rights appeals by the United Nations and many
world leaders is "unacceptable."

She repeated her government's call for Burma "to release all political
prisoners and remove restrictions on all political groups, including the
National League for Democracy."

She said this would enable "genuine dialogue and reconciliation" and the
restoration of democracy.

____________________________________
OPINION / OTHER

June 1, Irrawaddy
How much more does it take?

The US faces an uphill battle in its plan to pursue a UN Security Council
resolution on Burma. Powerful opposition to putting the issue before the
UNSC comes from China and Russia, two permanent members with veto power on
the council, and even current member Japan.

The three say Burma does not constitute an international or even regional
threat—a requirement for being put on the UNSC agenda. But how much
hardship and misery under the military regime, and how many refugees
fleeing for their own safety does it take to qualify for UNSC action?

Burmese people have suffered for too long for any further security council
quibbling and hesitation to delay what inevitably has to be inclusion on
its agenda. How long must we wait?

The US announced its plan during a discussion on Wednesday after a
closed-door briefing to the council by UN Under Secretary-General Ibrahim
Gambari on his recent visit to Burma. But both Russia and Japan were quick
to say it would be inappropriate to put Burma on the agenda.

Russia and Japan said Burma was not a threat to international peace and
security, and therefore should not be on the agenda. China simply said the
military-ruled country could solve its own problem.

 “The security council is a body that is primarily responsible for threats
to international peace and security,” Japan’s UN Ambassador Kenzo Oshima
said. “I don’t consider the situation in Myanmar [Burma] as a situation
that poses a threat to international peace and security.”

Last weekend, the military government extended the detention of
pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi by one year, despite high
expectations after she was allowed to meet Gambari. She has been detained
for more than 10 of the last 17 years.
True, Burma technically might not be an international threat, as there are
much more serious issues in other countries. But the question remains
whether the situation in Burma has to grow into a full-grown crisis in
order to be listed as an international threat.

In fact, Burma’s 50 million people have already suffered long enough. The
military regime has kept cracking down on the political opposition
movement since its coup in 1988, incarcerating about 1,200 political
prisoners in its notorious jails.

The country’s internal problems have also over-spilled into neighbors. For
instance, more than 130,000 Burmese refugees currently live in camps along
the Thai-Burmese border.

Over the past few weeks, some 16,000 ethnic Karen people have been forced
to flee their homes in eastern Burma because of attacks by government
troops on the pretext that they are fighting rebels of the Karen National
Union. Many refugees from the fighting are pouring over the Thai border.

While a political stalemate continues between the regime and the
opposition, Burma’s economic and social hardships have piled up, making it
one of the world’s poorest countries.

Refugee International, an international advocacy group, said in a report
issued on Thursday that thousands in Burma were in desperate need of aid
since they suffered from disease, malnutrition, poverty and abuse by the
military regime. This presumably referred to the thousands of internally
displaced persons in the country, contributing to what the report
described as one of the world’s most neglected crises.

After 18 long years of oppression, with no end in sight, and life becoming
more intolerable, the Burmese must now wonder what it will take for their
plight to be officially discussed by one of the world’s most powerful
forums.

____________________________________

June 1, Irrawaddy
Maung Aye confounds those who wrote him off - Aung Zaw

The Burmese military regime has wrapped up its belated quarterly meeting,
held for the first time in the country’s new administrative city,
Naypyidaw.

Although some analysts came up with endless speculation about the
possibility of  junta boss Than Shwe removing his number two, Maung Aye,
in an apparent power struggle between the two top leaders the deputy
senior general kept his post. He remains firmly in the position of army
commander-in-chief and is still vice-chairman of the State Peace and
Development Council.

To the surprise of  those observers who predicted Maung Aye would be
sidelined, he presided over a bridge-opening ceremony south of Rangoon in
late May, and a few days later he visited a trade show, the Jade, Gems and
Pearl Special Sales 2006, in Rangoon. Did those two public appearances
mean anything? Perhaps, borrowing from Mark Twain, Maung Aye was saying:
“The report of my death has been grossly exaggerated,”

Observers thought the visits were unusual. They remarked on the absence
from the public scene lately of Than Shwe, who last appeared with visiting
UN envoy Ibrahim Gambari at Naypyidaw.

Burmese military observers thought Than Shwe and Maung Aye had reached a
compromise. But some Burmese scholars who closely monitor the inner circle
of the secretive military junta said Than Shwe had agreed that Maung Aye
should take over more authority while he himself remained behind the
scenes.

In a surprise move, Than Shwe and Maung Aye saw eye-to-eye in promoting
Brig-Gen Myint Hlaing, commander of Northeast Command, to head the
country’s air defense department. Defense analysts said that the sudden
promotion of Myint Hlaing to number four man in the armed forces had
created resentment within the armed forces.

Myint Hlaing is a Maung Aye protégé who instigated the downfall of former
prime minister and military intelligence chief Khin Nyunt in 2004. Defense
sources said that Than Shwe also favored Myint Hlaing’s promotion.

Than Shwe is believed to prefer his number three man, Gen Shwe Mann, a
Buddhist Karen, to lead the armed forces, but the battle-hardened Maung
Aye has succeeded in maintaining good relations with the junta chief’s
reputed chosen heir.

Shwe Mann, who won the army’s prestigious Thura title during his battle
against Karen insurgents in the early 1990s, was a junior officer in 1988,
when Maung Aye was a powerful commander in Shan State. Shwe Mann
reportedly maintains good communications with two of his bosses, Than Shwe
and Maung Aye. That may mean an end to the speculation for now.